Methods and systems for determining process variables using location of center of gravity
First Claim
Patent Images
1. A method of monitoring materials in a container comprising the steps of:
- placing the container in a desired position, wherein the container rests in the desired position;
wherein when the container is placed in the desired position, a change in level of materials in the container changes position of center of gravity of the materials in the container along the horizontal axis;
wherein the change in level of materials in the container corresponds to a change in volume of materials in the container;
determining location of center of gravity of the materials in the container; and
determining level of materials in the container;
wherein the level of materials in the container is determined using position of the center of gravity of the materials in the container and container geometry.
1 Assignment
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
Methods and systems for using force measurements to determine the amount of material in a container and/or the rate at which material is discharged from a container are disclosed. A container for storing a desired material is positioned so that the center of gravity of the container shifts horizontally with changes in level of the material in the container. A plurality of load sensors are symmetrically arranged at a base of the container and are used to monitor the amount of materials in the container.
104 Citations
24 Claims
-
1. A method of monitoring materials in a container comprising the steps of:
-
placing the container in a desired position, wherein the container rests in the desired position; wherein when the container is placed in the desired position, a change in level of materials in the container changes position of center of gravity of the materials in the container along the horizontal axis; wherein the change in level of materials in the container corresponds to a change in volume of materials in the container; determining location of center of gravity of the materials in the container; and determining level of materials in the container; wherein the level of materials in the container is determined using position of the center of gravity of the materials in the container and container geometry. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4)
-
-
5. A method of monitoring materials in a container comprising:
-
placing the container at an angle to vertical; wherein the container rests on a first load sensor and a second load sensor; wherein the first load sensor and the second load sensor are separated by a predetermined distance; determining mass of the materials in the container using the readings of the first load sensor and the second load sensor; determining location of center of gravity of the container using a ratio of force at the first load sensor and force at the second load sensor; determining level of materials in the container using the location of the center of gravity and the angle of the container from vertical; and determining volume of materials in the container using the level of materials in the container and container geometry. - View Dependent Claims (6, 7, 8)
-
-
9. A method of monitoring the amount of materials in a container comprising:
-
placing the container on an angled platform, wherein the container rests on a first load sensor and a second load sensor; wherein the first load sensor and the second load sensor are separated by a predetermined distance; locating center of gravity of the container at a first point in time; changing the amount of materials in the container; locating center of gravity of the container at a second point in time; determining the change in the level of materials in the container between the first point in time and the second point in time; and determining the volume of materials removed from the container. - View Dependent Claims (10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16)
-
-
17. A system for monitoring material storage comprising:
-
a container, wherein the container rests in a desired position and stores a material; wherein level of the material in the container is determined based on horizontal location of center of gravity; wherein center of gravity of the container shifts horizontally with changes in the level of the material in the container; wherein volume of the material stored in the container is determined based on the level of the material in the container; and a plurality of load sensors coupled to the container; wherein the plurality of load sensors are symmetrically arranged at a base of the container. - View Dependent Claims (18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24)
-
Specification